After ending the previous session mostly higher, stocks could see some further upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 24 points.
The modest upward momentum for the markets may be partly due to comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who said the central bank has not ruled out the possibility of negative deposit rates and other non-standard policy measures in the euro area.
Speaking at a farewell conference for Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer in Jerusalem, Draghi said, "We will look with an open mind at these measures that are especially effective in our institutional setup and that fall within our mandate."
He reiterated the warning that some of the non-standard measures could lead to unintended consequences but said this does not mean that they should not be used.
Nonetheless, trading activity may be somewhat subdued as the Federal Reserve begins its two-day monetary policy meeting.
While the Fed is not expected to announce an immediate change in policy when it releases its post-meeting statement on Wednesday, traders will be looking for any signals regarding when the central bank will scale back its stimulus program.
In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a significant rebound in housing starts in the month of May, although starts still came in well below economist estimates.
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